Is Punishment Justice?

I have been reading some wise words today explaining the meaning of justice. It was formulated in this way. There is no right and wrong in the universe there is only what works and what doesn’t. A deeper way to see this is what serves you or what does not. Now people will make moral decisions on the basis of what they are taught in their culture or society, what they think is right to guide their decisions and give them certainty. We don’t like to feel we don’t have answers so formulating a moral world view gives us support and certainty around our beliefs about people and what should happen to them if they don’t conform.

Now I will say from my perspective, having undertaken near death research, I have a cosmic world view that we go on after life. So I don’t see this as the only frame of reference. My view has expanded given information that has come to me about karma, lessons and the purpose of life. I see that we go on and we are here to learn. That places me in a space of non judgement. That doesn’t mean that I condone violence or any dark activity. However, I see the contrast that negative actions create in terms of us choosing a higher choice of a better world based on the experience of what doesn’t work and what does. So we do live in a world of negative and positive. That is negative emotions that create anger, hate, jealousy, guilt, fear and judgement. The positive array of emotions include: love, compassion, hope, peace, happiness (joy), truth, trust and so on. So those emotions exist in every person. So in moments we can be the the person we judge as bad, negative or wrong. We know we work against inner truth as it never feels good, guilt may be there. We may believe morally we are right but the feeling doesn’t match in that we feel sadness deep down for our own action.

I want to move to the cliche ‘two wrongs don’t make a right’. Often we seek to punish so they feel fear and pain and don’t do the action again. Yet our punishment evokes fear, sadness, depression, suicidal thoughts or in some countries, death. This is negative punishing a negative. Hence two wrongs not making a right. The person subject to the punishment doesn’t get the lesson, they don’t learn really the impact of their actions. Restorative justice practices take us closer in that the perpetrator gets to meet the victim and family in a forum where the impact is discussed. We learn best from experience not theoretical judgements and then hurtful punishment. In fact if a person is hurt in punishment they carry resentment. How many people go to jail and learn more about crime then what a civil society of respect feels like. They are treated like animals in some prisons, I’ve been to a few. I actually worked as a stenographer in a jail, I clowned in a detention centre and went to a hard core jail in Bolivia. At the time I was hoping to teach alternatives to violence. They didn’t let me in as the conditions were bad. This type of treatment is historical to reflect ‘an eye for an eye’. Of course as Gandhi says ‘an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind’. We get caught up in punishment, escalation, punishment, more attacks and this culminates into the war theorem. Both sides attack, both are threatened and the name of the game is destroy the enemy. We repeat infinitem the same mistakes and still it is believed that violence works. The objective in my understanding is for the violence to stop. Well if that is truly the goal and added to this, to restore harmony and peace, then we have to think differently.

Today we are starting to understand the enemy is within given unquestioned and conditioned mind patterns. We have to start to explore what is driving our discord and deal with it. Rather than blaming the other we start to look at our fear, paranoia, traditional beliefs, understanding and move into creative thinking focusing on what is wanted – true peace. When we go there are strategies change as our beliefs change. If we truly want peace we will look for ways to de-escalate, to create forums for dialogue, to stand in the other’s shoes, to help the other see our side to inform them of the true situation. To resolve conflict you have to come from an integrated values based worldview.

So returning to the notion of justice. I have heard the real justice is to be just. However, expanding on that justice is about adjusting conflicted parties. Now what this means is to adapt, a justment. Nature (from which we are birthed) adapts to any disruption to the whole. It doesn’t seek revenge. There is of course natural selection, nature tends to select for varieties that ensure the life is sustainable. So the system is always monitoring for the highest good of the whole. Our society is like this but with limited understanding of how this can work in a mirrored reality to nature. So to adjust, is not about mind control or social conditioning. It is about correcting, not in punishment frame, but in one that works given that the whole wants peace and harmony. If you want to teach violence by violence then the same mind pattern will continue. Note that what we program does wire in the brain, so if you want to change society you have to practice through experience a different mind pattern such as teaching harmony in prisons, schools, workplaces and so on. So the correction could be that someone did something that negatively affected another, they are informed and then they may do an activity to rectify the problem. If it was stealing then they learn to give to the one they stole from. They hear their side, they learn of their sadness and they discuss with the other how they were thinking and why they stole in the first place. On reflection they discuss what they learned from the experience. Then both decide on an activity that would rectify the emotional and physical harm caused. This creates a spiritual shift in both. It also gives empowerment as they feel power over their situation. Disempowerment is what creates powerlessness which leads to abuse and the taking of power.

So nature functions in terms of how works – wind, rain, soil, sunshine, nutrients, chemical balances, geography, interdependency and so on. Now when something changes in nature, nature does not call it wrong, it seeks to adapt to the change with the highest good of all life programmed into this self regulating system. Nature does not see enemies even at the molecular level. Uncontrollable cell division is not the enemy and yes whilst white blood cells and other biochemical changes occur, they are not fighting disease they are adapting for the whole of the organism. Do you see the difference? Humans call it fighting or attacking disease, nature calls it adjusting to a change that is not beneficial to the whole. There are genes dormant that become active in the right conditions. The cleverness of nature is that it has many contingencies, it tests out what works and what doesn’t. It is not complaining, fighting or arguing that something is wrong, it just quietly works out the solution for the good of the whole.

This is what humans will be required to understand in the future if they are to sustain the planet. Sustainability is simply an adjustment that works and is continuous over time. The life is sustained as the changes and existing array of movements int nature are working, the organism (earth) is alive and thriving. However, what nature contends with is us and our war mentality that fights what it fears rather than seeks to find harmonious ways to bring what ever is out of alignment into alignment with the truth of peace and harmony. Instead in our innocence and confusion we allow fear to dominate our decisions and in truth we are making things worse. We don’t understand where we fit in the scheme of things, we have believed notions that nature serves us, it does, but we cannot live without it, so we must serve the natural order. We have to come to a place of humility where we are willing to admit we do not know ever iteration of nature, every combination, every purpose and movement of nature. We know bits and pieces but we do not feel the whole unless we are at a high spiritual level and are identifying our very essence with the natural life force. That is a different consciousness that is flowing with the natural order. Those who have lived at this level completely allow life to guide their decisions, they let go of all control and live in complete trust. Those at this level are tuned into the natural intelligence that permeates all life. This intelligence is clearly evident as anyone who has studied science can attest, we live in the most miraculous creation and we didn’t create it. We are still learning how to live with this system that can supply our need but not our greed.

So is punishment justice. No it is not. It only replicates the negative and expands it. We can only correct behaviour by helping the person face what has been done, communicate respectfully to those impacted, together work out solutions and make reparations so that there is a win/win. It is a place of great empowerment and learning to love one self. When you love yourself you can only then feel connection for others. This is how correction becomes connection, for in truth, we are all connected both spiritually and materially. The feeling of love is a spiritual feeling, we naturally join with the being of our attention. Love shares, cares, reveals, heals and stays. Fear will shut down, leave, divides, rejects, moves away creating separation. It in not the true reality of life on earth. All of life on earth is interconnected. All of it is dependent on other life for survival. So until we really get that and recognise that punishment is not the teacher, love and education is, then we will start to see reform in our society. Imagine if we invest in peace education and not incarceration, that is prevention. Those who are contemplating crime or have been engaged in crime will begin to see a different future. They will learn how to get their needs met in a positive, fun way. Perhaps we start to rearrange our society from taking to giving so that people naturally feel abundance and don’t live in a poverty mentality that wants more. Perhaps we move into a new way of seeing life, that we create our reality through the way we think and behaviour follows this. When we realise that what we are doing doesn’t work given what we want – peace, abundance, happiness etc. then we are not punished but guided to see another way. No person is entirely bad, everyone even the worst criminal in the eyes of our world, can learn to see differently. It may take a lot of love to heal their internal wounds and false programming but it can be done. As our society starts to evolve mentally, physically and spiritually we will automatically look at what works, functions and adapt to changes with a sense of mindfulness of the whole society, we will start to see others as ourselves, we will connect as a world family. I definitely felt that as a World Peace Clown travelling the world. I felt the love of strangers, I saw there was nothing to fear in spaces of love, I saw the true beauty in the faces of so many. I saw those suffering and sent them love not judgement. I never felt more connected and flowing with life, for me the outcome was happiness. As what I did for others returned to me 100 fold. I got far more back then I gave because it is the nature of people when they love to give. So you can see how our economic system has bred taking as the security, take as much as you can otherwise you will have nothing. Well in nature the opposite is true. Give as much to others and it returns. You have heard of what you do to another comes back’ or life is like a karmic wheel, energy response, we all mirror others. You see that on the train when they all sit there on phones, ignoring each other as they are too afraid to speak. Yet in truth they have a person who is a universe of experience next to them and they miss out on meeting a member of their community. Television programs them to not trust people, they could be weird or steal from you. I have been everywhere I saw the same mind patterns and I knew it was not true. I jumped on the train as a clown and suddenly I saw my world family responding with laughter, smiles, chatting away happily. That was the real world. What a relief I became a clown it truly showed me the lies we tell ourselves and the promise of what awaits us when we face fear with courage and push through. When we do a radical thing and talk to someone. Two guys mentally unwell talked to me yesterday. We chatted about democracy. One gave me his view and feeling of gratitude for our society. The other smiled and waved. I seek to treat them as I would anyone, and I was the one who benefited from their wisdom and example. They had the courage to talk. I love that. I talk to people all the time and often have deep discussions, I make friends wherever I go and I love it.

So I send to you love, don’t punish the other, they don’t need to feel your pain. You need to face your own pain and find forgiveness for the other. By all means tell them how you feel and share your wisdom but never hurt them, it only returns to you. So let’s stop punishing and let’s solve the problem and correct misunderstandings and erroneous beliefs, but not transposing our own on but working by the rule of thumb ‘does it work or not’ given what the person truly wants. Justice is to be just in your own actions, to not teach what you don’t want to experience. That is wisdom. That joins humanity. That is world service. That is love. That is who you truly are!

Love a silly peace clown xxxx